*PALO CONTEH TESTIFIES THAT HE HAS NO INTENTION TO KILL THE PRESIDENT OR COMMITS TREASON BUT ANSWERED THE CALL OF THE PRESIDENT TO HELP FIGHT COVID19*

Lead counsel Dr Abdulai Conteh opened the case on behalf of the Defence

On behalf of the first accused, we want to thank the jury. We have reached the stage where the 1st accused if he chooses can give evidence on his own behalf, but he is not oblige to do so or he can stand from the dock and ask the prosecution to prove his innocence. But in this case the accused choose to testify.

He has been charged with three counts of treason offences, seven counts under the small arms commission act and two counts of perjury. He has no burden to prove his innocence.

The prosecution has called thirteen witnesses and there has been no evidence to prove the charges against the accused.

We heard from the prosecution that the first accused was at State House on the 19th March 2020 with a B17 gun and therefore it amounts to treason.

We will give evidence as to how the gun came to be in State House on the 19th March 2020.

The whole of the prosecution case is based on the circumstances in which the gun was found in State House. They have not led evidence that the first accused went to state house with the B17 *with the necessary intent to harm the president.*

*To have B17 or any kind of gun at state house is not treason.*

The first accused will give evidence as to how his brown bag containing the gun was found at State House and how he voluntarily handed his bag pronouncing “that is my bag containing my personal weapon.” The prosecution claims he wanted to assassinate the president, we say no there was no such intent.

Much heavy weather has being made of the scanning machine at State House. The prosecution says the first accused failed to go through the scanning machine. One of the prosecution witnesses testified that there is a CCTV camera which records what is going on in the surrounding of state house and the footage of the CCTV is recorded.

An application was made by the Defence for the production of the footage on the 19 March 2020 which would have shown this court and members of the jury beyond speculation what happened at State House, particularly the sensitive area. This recording is in the possession of the State. It would have beyond reasonable doubt shown this court what was happened on the 19 March 2020.

But this CCTV footage has not been produced by the State.

There was also an application for this court to visit the locus sight of the scene. The Judge said the visit will be made at the close of the defence case.
Members of the jury, the case of the Defence is that on an invitation by the President he visited State House on that day in response to the fight against the deadly Covid-19 pandemic and regrettably stands here today charged with treason.

On his visit he had with him his brown bag which contain his personal weapon, he went to the security handed his bag voluntarily pronouncing it contains my personal weapon keep it for me. Is that the conduct of a person with the intent to assassinate the president? We say no, he went to visit the president with no malicious intent but just to answer the call on national duty.

He will tell this court why he was invited on the second visit.

The police were not investigating any case of treason but offence under the small arms, but with advice from the Law Officer Department they changed the investigation from offences under the small arms act to treason. The charge of treason was an afterthought.

In so far as the offences under the small arms are concerned, members of the jury not an iota, not one peck of evidence has been shown before this court to show that the first accused committed these offences. You the members of the jury are not judges of speculation but of fact, and there has been no evidence that the weapon had no valid license or the weapon was concealed.

He has also been charged with perjury and perjury is making a statement on oath but in this case he made a statement on the application form for the renewal of his license which contain no clause that what he is writing is true. In fact from one of the prosecution witness she said that there is no oath administered when filling application form. How can filling an application form for small arms amount to perjury?

My Lord with the leave of the court may I call the first accused to take the witness stand.

DW1

Name :Alfred Paolo Conteh
Address: 11 Berewa Drive Wilberforce Freetown
Occupation: Barrister and politician

I served the country under the military for 16yrs. During the course of my service, I rose to the rank of Major.

*Did you serve your country in any other capacity?* In 2007- 2014 I was the Minister of Defense. From 2014  to December 2015, the then president assigned me to lead the fight against the Ebola virus. From March 2016 to the end of 2017 I was appointed the minister of internal affairs.